love of Christ and his Gospel; and I found two Irish gentlemen amongst the pupils of the Propaganda, who told me that there were good Christians amongst the Quakers, and the Methodists, and other denominations in England. One of them observed, as we walked together, that all our works are nothing, and all our knowledge is nothing, but the merits of Christ alone have any real value; and the other remarked, that the philosophy of Aristotle had introduced a bad spirit into the doctrine of the Catholic Church. I found amongst them also, a black Mahomedan, twenty years of age, who was baptized by Cardinal Litta. He seemed to lose himself in meditation and in prayer. But my joy and pleasure did not last long; for all the pupils were introduced to the Pope in the month of January, and we went the same day into the building of the Propaganda, in the street called Piazza di Spagna. The Pope received us with fatherly kindness, and gave us his benediction; and when we left his room, one of his clergy said to us, "You are the true soldiers of the Pope :" to which another Prelate replied, "Not soldiers of the Pope, but soldiers of the Church of Christ." I was much delighted with the answer of that Prelate; and we entered the Propagantia.

A priest who was once a pupil of the Seminary of the Pope, where I was at first, became our master at the Propaganda; he was distinguished by his great knowledge of the scholastic divinity. He spoke on the first day of our entering, against St. Cyprian, because he resisted the power of the Pope. He said to us, "I will now introduce the customs of the Pope's seminary amongst you. You must learn to argue against heretics in syllogistical form; and learn to distinguish well, what is a fide, and what is proximum ad fidem." This is a technical term in scholastic divinity. A fide, is every doctrine, the disbelief of which would make a man a heretic; and which is already distinctly so decided upon by Popes and Councils;-and proximum ad fidem, is every doctrine not yet distinctly decided on by Popes and Councils, but remaining as an opinion of the theo

logians, the disbelief of which would make a man a temerarius, though not a heretic. Amongst the first is the Infallibillity of the General Councils, and Transubstantiation; amongst the second, the Infallibility of the Pope, and the immaculata conceptio beatæ Virginis Mariæ, and whether Christ died for all, and whether the Pope is supra conciliis, or concilia supra Papam. I said to him that I did not like the scholastic divinity, because I considered it as the disputations of men, and of no great value. He replied, "You mistake! I will prove to you by an example, that scholastic divinity is necessary, by asking you a question. "Is it a fide, that Christ died for all men ?" I answered, "Yes, because I must believe the Scriptures!" He rejoined, "The Scriptures without the decision of the Church, have not any authority, because the Church and the Popes are the judges of the Holy Scriptures." I said to him, "I want not an interpretation of a Council upon passages which are clearly and distinctly explained." He answered, "We find the doctrine of the infallibility of the Pope, and the immaculata conceptio beatæ Virginis Mariæ, clearly and distinctly mentioned in the holy Scriptures: but it is not yet a dogma, because the Popes have not yet confirmed f."

On another occasion he remarked, that Jansenius merited burning, because his doctrines were heretical altogether he said this to all the pupils. I replied, "The Church has no power to burn a man!" He asked me, "How can you prove this?" I said, "Thou shalt not kill, says the Scripture !" He rejoined, "But the shepherd has a right to kill a wolf, who enters the sheep-fold." I observed to him, "A man is not a wolf!" "Seventeen Popes, however, have done it!" he answered. I thereupon rejoined, "Seventeen Popes have committed a sin !"

In consequence of this conversation, I wrote to Cardinal Litta, telling him that I was at length persuaded, from the principles which I heard defended in the Propaganda, that the Protestants of Germany had not told me falsehoods of the Church of Rome. The Cardinal

came to me the following day, and conversed with me for nearly three hours. He said, "I have read your letter, and I cannot deny, that the Rector spoke nonsense and absurdities; but so do you also in the letter you have written to me! You do not admit the doctrine, "Extra Ecclesiam nulla est salus!" and this doctrine is a fide! A man who does not hear the truth is condemned!" "This I believe," replied I," but I know many good Christians amongst the Protestants." "For this reason," added the Cardinal, "the elder theologians, make a distinction between heretici formales and materiales, but we cannot. It is not permitted us to ask God, why he does save the one, and not the other man; neither can we understand, why Christ wrought many miracles in one city and none in another; we know not why God commanded St. Paul to preach the Gospel to one particular country, and not to another! All this is a mystery for us! The Rector told you the truth also, when he said, it is only proximum ad fidem, and not a fide, that Christ died for all men, for the Church has not yet decided it." I remarked," But the Holy Scriptures tells me this." He said, "You are no judge of the Holy Scriptures,-this is the great error of the Protestants: they believe that every one may understand the Scriptures! But we must hear the Popes! It is true, that the moral conduct of Alexander the Sixth was very objectionable, and we do not deny the facts; but his bulls are very fine, and they are according to the truth! You must consider, that as yet you are not a doctor, but merely a disciple. You must therefore hear what they teach you, and not take the place of a master and dispute. I wish you well." I wept when he thus addressed me, and kissed his hand.

At this time it was that I formed my acquaintance with Mr. Drummond, General Macauley, Mr. Hallyburton, Lord Calthorpe, and another English gentleman, who was at Rome, and came into the Propaganda to

see me.

An unfortunate from Chaldea, was in the Propaganda, a man sixty-five years of age, he was melancholy

and dejected, and the reason of it was this. The Pope heard that he had been ordained by another Chaldean Bishop, who dissented from the Romish Church; and the Pope therefore commanded him to come to Rome to justify himself, at the throne of the Holy See! The poor Bishop of Chaldea obeyed; and sixteen years ago he came to Rome, ever since which he has remained in the Propaganda as a poor man, and quite disregarded; without having ever obtained permission to go before the Pope, or to be examined with respect to the manner of his ordination! This poor Bishop frequently presented the testimonials of physicians to the Cardinals, declaring that he was unable to bear the climate of Rome, and that therefore it was necessary for him to return soon to his own country. But the Cardinals would not grant him permission, because in his oriental simplicity, he once said to them, that he had much confidence in the Patriarch of the Nestorians, in Chaldea. The Cardinals, therefore, were afraid that he would unite himself with that Nestorian Patriarch, and endeavoured, therefore, to retain him at Rome, where he suffers much, and languishes. I was one day in good spirits, and laughed very loud about a certain occurrence, when the poor Chaldean Bishop began to weep, and said the following words to me: "You laugh now, but it will come to pass, that you will fall into the clutches of the Cardinals, and then you will weep blood."

In a letter which I wrote to Mr. Bunsen, I acquainted him with the last mentioned occurrence, and added: “I will go to the East, and preach the Gospel of Christ, but I will be always the enemy of this antichristian tyrany of Rome. I will preach the pure doctrine of Christ, without adulterating it with Popery." This letter came into the hands of the Inquisition, as did also some of my other letters which I wrote to different friends, entreating them to assist Mr. Taunucaso, an eastern gentleman of the Propaganda, who was endeavouring to translate the Bible into his native language. The Inquisition opened likewise the letters which my English and German friends wrote to me; and my

German friends, who were at Rome, learnt that I was in great danger, and they recommended me to the Prince of Bavaria, who was at that time at Rome, and who wrote upon the occasion to his father, the King of Bavaria, and assured me that he would protect me. But the same day that the Prince of Bavaria left Rome, for Naples, Cardinal Litta sent for me.-I entered his room, and he said to me, "We are informed of the correspondence which you still maintain, notwithstanding I have warned you several times. We know, by that correspondence, your sentiments and your manner of thinking. These are entirely opposite to the Pope's, and if you should stay any longer in the Propaganda, you would taint your companions with your sentiments. You must therefore, by express command of the holy father, remain a prisoner till you leave Rome, and return to Vienna." Hereupon I was compelled to stay three hours in the house of an advocate of the Inquisition, where I was watched by a little dwarf, (without having permission to see any of my friends,) till the post coach came to the door, about twelve o'clock at night. A disguised soldier was my companion as far as Bologna, and from thence I wrote a letter to the Cardinal Litta, complaining that I had been condemned without his having examined me.

Cardinal Lant, the Governor of Bologna, was ordered to receive me with all kindness, and to give me a companion to Vienna. He gave me a physician, whose anxiety to know my internal sentiments shewed me that he was a member, or a spy of the Inquisition. Having arrived at Vienna, I delivered the letters which Cardinal Litta gave me for the Pope's Ambassador at Vienna, and I said to him that I would take refuge under the protection of the Austrian Government, if they would not give me my liberty. But I promised him never to seek vengeance, and I said that I would act conscientiously and with freedom. He seemed satisfied with my declaration, and having been informed, before my arrival at Vienna, of the particulars of my correspondence, he